You are currently viewing our boards as a guest which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free so please, join our community today!

If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact contact us.

If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Complete Urinary Incontinence - Please Help!

Hi!

For the past week or two, I have been suffering from really severe urinary incontinence! Half the time, I get no warning, my bladder just starts emptying! I have to wear sanitary towels and masses of toilet paper in my panties all the time now. I spoke to my G.P. and he was useless! I mean, I am almost seventeen, not eighty, so why is this happening? I have really bad nerve problems and I think that the nerve supply to my bladder has been interrupted. My hearing has decreased massively in under two weeks already! :cry:

Does anyone have any information about the causes, etc. of urinary incontinence?

"OBJECTIVES: To investigate the etiologies of urinary bladder involvement in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the clinicoradiologic features of gastrointestinal tract manifestations and clinical outcomes in patients with lupus cystitis accompanied by gastrointestinal manifestations. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective chart review on 413 patients with SLE. Patients were selected for review on the basis of lower urinary tract symptoms including urinary frequency, urgency and urinary incontinence. Radiologic studies were analyzed in patients with lupus cystitis. RESULTS: Ten consecutive patients, complicated with lower urinary tract symptoms, were identified. Underlying etiologies were as follows: lupus cystitis in five, neurogenic dysfunction secondary to transverse myelitis in three, cyclophosphamide-induced cystitis in one and tuberculous cystitis in one patient. All patients with lupus cystitis showed gastrointestinal manifestations, such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea during the periods of cystitis symptoms. In all patients with lupus cystitis, paralytic ileus was demonstrated on plain abdominal X-ray and ascites, bilateral hydroureteronephrosis and thickened bladder wall were identified on abdominal ultrasound or CT. Abdominal CT revealed bowel wall thickening in four of the five patients. The main sites of thickened bowel on abdominal CT were territory supplied by superior mesenteric artery. Two of five patients with lupus cystitis expired during the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: Diverse etiologies may cause lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with SLE. Lupus cystitis is strongly associated with gastrointestinal involvement and abdominal CT can be a useful radiologic tool to investigate the gastrointestinal tract involvement in patients with lupus cystitis."
Lupus patients are more likely to have UTI's and the arthritic complications of Lupus makes Urinary tract pathology (such as incontinence) more common in patients with Lupus. A high number of arthritis patients and Lupus patients with arthritic complications reported difficulty controlling their urine, confirming that incontinence is a widespread and often under-reported problem.
Here is another study that your GP should be made aware of:
"A 46-year-old woman was diagnosed as having systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in 1990 and was treated with a daily maintenance dose of prednisolone (PSL). She suddenly developed urinary incontinence with a high grade fever and erythema of the arms and legs on May 10, 1998 and was admitted to our hospital. Laboratory findings on admission showed proteinuria, pancytopenia and hypocomplementemia. Anti-nuclear antibody, anti-DNA antibody and anti-Sm antibody were positive. Ultra-sonography after urination revealed dilatation of the bladder. Cystometrography showed an autonomous neurogenic bladder. The diagnosis of neurogenic bladder complicated by peripheral neurone disturbance associated with recurrence of SLE was made and intravenous methylprednisolone (m-PSL) pulse therapy (1000 mg/day) was initially administered for 3 days followed by 60 mg of daily per os PSL. Urinary incontinence did not improved. The same therapy was conducted 3 times with no responce. Therefore, treatment was started with intravenous cyclophosphamide pulse therapy (500 mg/day) which resulted in marked improvement of urinary incontinence, hypocomplementemia, proteinuria and pancytopenia. This case developed a neurogenic bladder caused by lower neurone disturbance but did not show central nervous system lupus with upper neurone disturbance. Neurogenic bladder caused by lower neurone disturbance in SLE has rarely been reported. The vasculitis of SLE was probably responsible for this neuropathy and this case was successfully treated with intravenous cyclophosphamide pulse therapy."
It is time for you to get aggressive with your doctor. As in the case above, you can be successfully treated for this problem. But, he has to take it seriously. Urinary incontinence is a problem for Lupus patients with several underlying issues that should be addressed. It is also a problem with arthritis patients. Make him take you seriously and insist that he begin treatment IMMEDIATELY!! At your age, you should not be made to suffer this on top of everything else that you have to deal with! Please keep us advised!

Wow, it blew my mind to see something from IloveHistory. I've often wondered what happened to her.
I have incontinence hassles, too. Going to the commissary can be a challenge. I go to the RR just before leaving, then drive two stoplights to the commissary. I stop in the RR on the way in, then shop for about an hour. I go to the RR again, then finish my shopping. I go once more before checking out and driving home. As soon as I get there, I go again before unloading the car. I've read that interstitial cystitis is sometimes common with Sjogren's. I've tried mentioning it to my rheumy, but she hasn't been interested in hearing it.
Hugs,
Marla

Marla you sound like me, visit the RR before I leave work, drive home - an hour - and run to the RR. I had not seen this thread before. Susie's article was interesting it has info I didn't know. There goes that dang ole light bulb!

I can't believe I am having this discussion but here goes... The problem for me is not the need to go often it is simply that I will go without warning. I am losing/have lost any control over my bladder. (this is really embarrassing). When this began two years ago I went to the OBGYN to see if my bladder had fallen after the hysterectomy and he said everything was fine. I now have to wear something 24/7. It is not only embarrassing it is a constant reminder, even on good days, of how far I have gone down.

MariSuccess is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.

This is too weird, I was just going to start a post on this as recently incontinence has become a real issue and I wanted to see what others were dealing with. Last night I woke up completely soaked through (a maxi pad - for just in case I had minor incontinence - and a towel I had laid down under me because I'd been coughing a lot). I have one extra problem, though. My throat often passes fluids to my lungs instead of my stomach causing excessive coughing and therefore I wet my pants. But last night was a first! So this is another sign of the Lupus I "don't" have. I'm going to buy the adult diapers and wear them at night. It's not like I have a husband I'm trying to impress so all I'll do is save my mattress. Honestly, can any of this get better? Oh, and my right lung feels like I've been punched repeatedly, probably from the fluid and coughing but of course it's Saturday and I'm clueless on who to call to see if this is serious or not.

Please remember ladies, while it may be embarrassing and truly distressing, for the most part it's our secret. My battles with my bowels are far more frightening as they can really be detected and only by the grace of God alone have I made it to a bathroom on time so far.

Thanks for sharing you guys. Again, it is so important not to feel alone!

This is too weird, I was just going to start a post on this as recently incontinence has become a real issue and I wanted to see what others were dealing with. Last night I woke up completely soaked through (a maxi pad - for just in case I had minor incontinence - and a towel I had laid down under me because I'd been coughing a lot). I have one extra problem, though. My throat often passes fluids to my lungs instead of my stomach causing excessive coughing and therefore I wet my pants. But last night was a first! So this is another sign of the Lupus I "don't" have. I'm going to buy the adult diapers and wear them at night. It's not like I have a husband I'm trying to impress so all I'll do is save my mattress. Honestly, can any of this get better? Oh, and my right lung feels like I've been punched repeatedly, probably from the fluid and coughing but of course it's Saturday and I'm clueless on who to call to see if this is serious or not.

Please remember ladies, while it may be embarrassing and truly distressing, for the most part it's our secret. My battles with my bowels are far more frightening as they can really be detected and only by the grace of God alone have I made it to a bathroom on time so far.

Thanks for sharing you guys. Again, it is so important not to feel alone!

Have the bowel problem too! Have had that for about 3 years. The GOOD news is that all the meds that I am on usually cause constipation so for me they simply caused things to go back to normal! LOL At least one good thing came out of it!

MariSuccess is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.